Today marks the one year anniversary of a turbulent escape from The Philippines in the eye of the global Coronavirus pandemic. A scary, adventurous tribulation that left me mere hours from being locked down in the capital city of Manila indefinitely. In the proceeding year, this story has been widely shared and re-told in numerous interviews, including a recent feature in The Washington Post’s Traveling Against Time . Today we will be looking back on this wild ride!
WOW! It’s crazy to think this wild experience happened one year ago! In many ways it feels like an eternity since then yet in other ways it feels like just yesterday. So much has transpired since this account from March of 2020 and many things have been put on pause, living one year in quarantine. The past year has been the ultimate lesson in perspective, gratitude, and patience. And extremely eye-opening, witnessing human’s response to the grandest of social experiments our country has faced in modern time
In re-visiting these accounts there is so much irony. Irony in that when I set out for my “brief sabbatical” in August of 2018 my one goal was to not have a plan, just be present. I was seeking exploration of new lands, understanding different cultures, and held a strong desire for adventure. My first month abroad brought me one of the craziest encounters of my life in the Amazon Jungle . My final month brought an arguably crazier adventure during my narrow escape and entry back home. It’s safe to say that